AP Biology

Syllabus

2017-2018

Ms. M. Rivera

Room 330

(956)254-5300

5th period conference

Textbook

Biology AP Edition – Campbell and Reece (8th Edition)

Course Description

AP Biology is a yearlong course which includes those topics regularly covered in a college introductory biology course and differs significantly from the standards-based high school biology course with respect to the kind of textbook used, the range and depth of topics covered, the kind of laboratory work performed by students, and the time and effort required of the students. The textbook used by AP Biology is also used by college biology majors, and the kinds of labs done by AP students are equivalent to those done by college students. AP Biology is a course that aims to provide students with the conceptual framework, factual knowledge and analytical skills necessary to deal critically with the rapidly changing science of biology. This course is designed to prepare students for the Biology College Board Advanced Placement Exam. (Monday, May 14, 2018)

Materials

Composition Book

1 inch binder

Lined loose leaf paper

Highlighters

Pen/Pencil

Grading

Students earn grades based on the quality and accuracy of work done in and out of class. Exams 50%

Lab and Lab Reports30%

Daily Work/Homework/Readings20%

*Late work will not be accepted.

Exams

Exams will be fifty percent multiple choice and fifty percent free response. Exam content will be cumulative in nature. They will address new and previously tested material. Students are expected to demonstrate an understanding of the connections across the content. All exams will be timed in order to prepare students for the AP Biology Exam. In case of an absence during a scheduled test, the student will have one school week (5 days) to complete the missed test. It is the student’s responsibility to speak to the teacher and schedule a time, outside of the regularly scheduled class time, to take the test. This will be done in order to avoid losing instructional or lab time. A grade of zero will be given if the student does not complete the test after five days.

*Any student interested in taking the AP Biology exam, on Monday, May 14, 2018, will be required to take a practice exam.

Quizzes

There will be at least one quiz per unit. Some quizzes will be announced while others will not. Quiz format will vary depending on topic being covered. Quizzes will be used to determine whether students are reading the textbook and studying vocabulary. It has been my experience that students who read the textbook are more likely to succeed in both the course and the AP Exam. I highly encourage all students to keep up with the reading.

Labs and Lab Reports

Formal lab reports are required for each of the Inquiry-Based AP Biology Labs. You will work in pairs but will submit individual lab reports reflecting your group’s findings. It is highly encouraged to submit high quality reports in a composition book using only blue or black ink. No white out should be used in the composition book. Lab reports must include the following: title, background information, purpose or question, hypothesis, materials, procedure, data, results, and conclusion.

Each semester you will design an experiment. You will propose, in writing, the scientific question you wish to investigate. After receiving approval, you will formulate a hypothesis and design an experiment to test your hypothesis. Experimental designs are then peer-reviewed, redesigned if needed, and conducted outside of regularly scheduled class time. This project gives you an opportunity to be creative and apply the scientific method to a question you wish to investigate. A formal lab report must be submitted upon completion of the experiment.

Labs

The laboratory experience is extremely important in the AP Biology course. It is used to emphasize that biology and science is a process, which involves development and testing of a hypothesis, collection, analysis, and presentation of data, and a clear discussion of results. Students are required to come into the laboratory prepared and ready to complete the day’s procedures. Lab reports will be assigned for homework. During the course, students will complete the recommended laboratories in the AP Biology Investigative Labs: An Inquiry-Based Approach. The topics covered in these labs are:

Topic Outline

The AP Biology Curriculum is framed around four Big Ideas. For each of these Big Ideas, there is a set of core concepts called Enduring Understandings which will be used to guide the AP Biology course curriculum. Below is a table of the AP Biology Curriculum’s Big Ideas and Enduring Understandings that are covered in this course. AP Biology is a rigorous course which demands personal responsibility from the student. Students are strongly encouraged to complete nightly readings and study each day’s lecture notes on their own time.

Big Ideas / Enduring Understandings
One: The process of evolution drives the diversity and unity of life. / A. Change in the genetic makeup of a population over time is evolution.
B. Organisms are linked by lines of descent from common ancestry.
C. Life continues to evolve within a changing environment.
D. The origin of living systems is explained by natural processes.
Two: Biological systems utilize energy and molecular building blocks to grow, reproduce, and maintain homeostasis. / A. Growth, reproduction, and maintenance of the organization of living systems require free energy and matter.
B. Growth, reproduction, and dynamic homeostasis require that cells create and maintain internal environments that are different from their external environments.
C. Organisms use feedback mechanisms to regulate growth and reproduction, and to maintain dynamic homeostasis.
D. Growth and dynamic homeostasis of a biological system are influenced by changes in the system’s environment.
E. Many biological processes involved in growth, reproduction, and dynamic homeostasis include temporal regulation and coordination.
Three: Living systems retrieve, transmit, and respond to information essential to life processes. / A. Heritable information provides for continuity of life.
B. Expression of genetic information involves cellular and molecular mechanisms.
C. The processing of genetic information is imperfect and is a source of genetic variation.
D. Cells communicate by generating, transmitting, and receiving chemical signals.
E. Transmission of information results in changes within and between biological systems.
Four: Biological systems interact and these interactions possess complex properties. / A. Interactions within biological systems lead to complex properties.
B. Competition and cooperation are important aspects of biological systems.
C. Naturally occurring diversity among and between components within biological systems affects interactions with the environment.

Keep this syllabus in your binder for future reference.

STATEMENT OF UNDERSTANDING

Your success in this course can vary depending on many factors. In order to help you achieve your goal of succeeding in AP Biology I encourage you to do the following:

  • Complete assigned readings on time.
  • Study for tests and quizzes early. Cramming the night before is not an effective approach to studying.
  • Turn in all assigned work.
  • Be in class. Be on time.
  • Come to class prepared.
  • Participate in class.

By signing this contract, the student acknowledges that they have read the preceding syllabus for Ms. Rivera’s AP Biology class and that they understand and agree to the commitment necessary to be successful in this course.

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AP Bio Syllabus1